Nowadays the use of laundry washing machines, both “simple” laundry washing machines (i.e. laundry washing machines which can only wash and rinse laundry) and laundry washing-drying machines (i.e. laundry washing machines which can also dry laundry), is widespread.
In the present description the term “laundry washing machine” will refer to both simple laundry washing machines and laundry washing-drying machines.
Laundry washing machines generally comprise an external casing provided with a washing tub which contains a rotatable perforated drum where the laundry is placed. A loading/unloading door ensures access to the drum.
Laundry washing machines typically comprise a water supply unit and a products supply unit, preferably a drawer, for the introduction of water and washing/rinsing products (i.e. detergent, softener, rinse conditioner, etc.) into the tub.
Known laundry washing machines are also provided with water draining devices that may operate both during different phases of the washing program to drain the dirty water.
According to the known technique, a complete treating program typically includes different phases during which the laundry to be washed is subjected to adequate treatments.
A treating cycle usually comprises a main washing phase during which the laundry is treated by means of water and a detergent. The water is typically heated to a predetermined temperature based on the washing program selected by the user. During the main washing phase the drum is rotated, so as to apply also a mechanical cleaning action on the laundry. At the end of the main washing phase the drum is typically rotated at high rotational speed, so in such a way that dirty washing liquid (i.e. water mixed with detergent) is extracted from the laundry, and this dirty washing liquid is drained to the outside by the water draining devices.
A successive step of the cycle typically comprises a rinsing phase which usually comprises one or more rinsing cycles.
In a rinsing cycle, clean rinse water may be first added to the laundry. The rinse water is absorbed by the laundry and the rinse water removes from the laundry detergent and/or dirty particles not previously removed by washing liquid in the main washing cycle. The drum is then rotated to extract water and dirty particles/detergent from the laundry: the dirty water extracted is drained from the tub to the outside by the water draining devices.
After a rinsing phase, one or more final spinning phases may be provided for the extraction of the residual water contained in the wet laundry.
The water extracted during the spinning phase is drained towards the outside by means of the water draining devices (during or after the spinning phase).
According to the known technique, in the rinse phase a dose of rinse additive is added to the laundry. Rinse additives may comprise, for example, fabric softeners, fabric conditioners, waterproofing agents, fabric enhancers, rinse sanitization additives, chlorine-based additives, i.e. products suitable to be added in one of the rinsing cycles.
The rinse additive is typically added in the last rinsing cycle, in particular when the rinse additive is a fabric softener. In different embodiments, nevertheless, the rinse additive may not be added in the last rinsing cycle but before. For example, the rinse additive is typically added in the first rinsing cycle when the rinse additive is a chlorine-based additive.
Use of rinse additives contributes to reach special features for the laundry, such as softness, long lasting perfume, waterproofing, sanitization, etc.
Rinse additives may be used in particular form, typically and preferably in liquid form, but also as a gel, or powder, or tabs, or liquid-tabs.
Typically, rinse additives are delivered from the products supply unit (drawer) into the tub. The rinse additive falls at the bottom region of the tub and from there enters the perforated rotatable washing drum.
However, the washing programs of the known art pose some drawbacks.
A drawback posed by the washing programs of the known art lies in that the rinse additive enters the drum and wets the fabrics directly, thus creating high concentration areas of the same rinse additive over the laundry items.
High concentration of rinse additive in particular areas on the laundry items may cause a not homogenous treatment of the same laundry items.
The washed laundry, therefore, may not have the requested homogenous special features, i.e. softness, perfume, waterproofing, sanitization, etc.
High concentration of rinse additives may then cause stains or halos on the laundry items. Again, the washed laundry may not have the requested homogenous special features, i.e. softness, perfume, waterproofing, sanitization, etc.
Said drawbacks are nowadays particularly emphasized due to the use of concentrated or super concentrated rinse additives, such as concentrated or super concentrated softeners.
An object of aspects of the present invention is therefore to overcome the drawbacks posed by the known technique.
It is an object of aspects of the invention to provide a method for washing laundry in a laundry washing machine that makes it possible to improve the distribution of the rinse additives over the laundry items with respect to the known technique.
It is another object of aspects of the invention to provide a method for washing laundry in a laundry washing machine that makes it possible to improve the efficiency of the rinse additives on the laundry.
It is a further object of aspects of the invention to provide a method for washing laundry in a laundry washing machine that makes it possible to improve the homogeneity of the distribution of rinse additives on the laundry.